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ERA Radio News Bulletin (Oct.8)

In a historic verdict, an Athens court on Monday passed down a 20-year jail sentence to former Defense Minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos after finding him guilty of laundering millions of euros in kickbacks from defense deals. It also handed heavy terms to another 16 of his co-defendants. Mr. Tsochatzopoulos wife Vicky Stamati and his daughter Areti Tsochatzopoulou were sentenced to 12 years of imprisonment. The three, along with three other co-defendants, did not get suspension on their sentences, and will remain in prison.

Hospital unionist, head of the union representing workers at Sotiria Hospital in Athens has been arrested for blackmail, illegal possession of weapons and resisting arrest, faces prosecutor after being caught accepting bribe to stop protest. The 45-year-old is alleged to have demanded 50,000 euros in cash to call off a protest by workers. He was arrested after a sting operation in which he picked up the cash in marked bills from the hospital director’s home.
The Minister of health, Adonis Georgiades, pointed out at an interview with SKAI television, that the president of the employees of Sotiria hospital will be dismissed from his work position. Moreover, the Health Department of Syriza mentions in an announcement, that Mr. Georgiades, in a hilarious way, tried to connect the particular unionist, with the left wing, while it is widely known that the arrested unionist, was elected as president of the workers union with the votes of Pasok and New Democracy unionists, only five months ago.

Groundbreaking changes in Greece’s pension schemes are on the way as the social insurance funds are about to collapse due to high unemployment and liquidity shortage in the labor market. There are plans for a national pension of just 360 EUR and a ‘compulsory life insurance’ to cover the rest of a pensioners’ needs.

The plan is not new. The idea of a national pension of 350 EUR was announced by former Health Minister Andreas Loverdos (Socialist PASOK) in January 2010 and was supposed to go into effect as of 1.1.2015. In fact, the plan that was put on the rails before Greece sought the “rescue” of the International Monetary Fund in May 2010.

Golden dawn news

Revelations against the Golden Dawn MO, Stathis Boukouras, were disclosed by an old member of organization, Panagiotis Manavis, whom the MP named as a protected witness and he denied it.
In his interview with the newspaper TA NEA, the former Golden Dawn member, claims that the MP of Korinthia region of Golden DAwn, was taking money from the organizations’ fund

In the target of the Internal Affairs Division of Greek Police, are thirty five police stations, in which either interweaving relations were developed, or they were practicing a modulated regime of tolerance in unlawful activities of Golden Dawn.
10 police officers have already been suspended.
The «incorruptible» force of the Greek police, investigate more than 80 cases of racist violence in which police officers are involved.

Thorough investigation of the financial activities and accounts of Golden Dawn, and the accused MPs of the party, was ordered to be conducted by the Financial Crime Authorities by the investigating corruption magistrates, who handle the case file of the criminal organization, in order to determine if the case shows the commission of the offence of money laundering.

From the inquisitorial office, it is expected to be asked to waiver of the banking secrecy, in order to further investigate, the probability of committing other offences of economic nature.

A request for the waiver of the immunity of Golden Dawn MP, Elias Panagiotaros was sent to the Parliament by the Deputy Public Prosecutor of the Supreme Court, Mr. Pliotas, after the order issued by the Prosecutor of the Supreme Court, Eyterpi Koutzamani. The MP is charged with the crime of staging, which was committed in April 2010 in Larissa, after a scuffle with police. Four other members of Golden Dawn, are prosecuted along with Mr. Panagiotaros on the same offence.

Other news

The Prime Minister, Antonis Samaras, is in Israel today, accompanied by eight ministers and a group of business men.

His meeting with the Israeli Prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu is underway. At the same time, meetings of Greek and Israeli Ministers will be held while the signing of ten agreements and cooperation protocols will follow.

The Prime Minister will return to AThens tonight, while Mr. Venizelos will stay, to travel to Ramallah tomorrow, where he will meet with the Head of the Palestinian Authority

The trial of the journalist and publisher of the HOT DOC magazine, Kostas Vaxevanis, regarding the disclosure of Lagarde list names, started today, . The journalist, who was initially arrested for publishing the list, was acquitted by the court but theprosecutor appealed against the initial decision and the journalist is on trial again.
The tragicomic in the case is that while Kostas Vaxevanis is being tried for publishing the list, the former minister Giorgos Papakonstantinou, who had the list, is facing the possibility to be tried, for the cover-up of Lagarde list, by a Special Court, after the the Investigator’s Commission proposal, .

The president of Syriza, Alexis Tsipras, mentions a «political crime against Greek tax payers, and an economic scandal, in Skaramangas SHipyards, in his question submitted in the Parliament to the Minister of National Defence.

Mr. Tsipras accuses the owner of holding the Shipyards as a «collateral», and keeps the unpaid workers hostages in it

As mentioned inter alia, the Shipyards were given as a «gift» to a company whose direct contracts of 3 billion euros, were secured, and an astronomical advance amount of over 1 bilion euros was handed, thus violating any known principle, practice and methodology for the implementation of projects and contracts, and it resulted, for the NAvy today not to have the submarines that were ordered ordered, and are necessary for the defencive design and the employees of the shipyards are left without jobs literally on the street..

Nearly one third of the IMF’s Board of Governors, representing more than 40 non-European countries, strongly objected to Greece’s first bailout plan, the Wall Street Journal reports.

The countdown for the completion of the privatization of OPAP has started, and before the bourse opens on Friday Greek-Czech fund Emma Delta will have completed the acquisition of 105 million shares in the gaming company and paid state privatization fund TAIPED 622 million euros. As soon as the transaction is completed, OPAP’s governing board will hold a meeting during which 10 out of its 11 members will tender their resignations. The new board – including three Greeks and eight foreigners, possibly Czech – will be appointed and convene on the same day.

The eurozone will take a decision on how to cover Greece’s funding gap shortly before the end of the year, a senior official told journalists in Brussels on Tuesday. The official also said that the issue of further debt relief will only be discussed by the Eurogroup if Eurostat confirms that Greece produced a primary surplus in 2013. Confirmation is expected after April 2014

The public will face problems in transportation by metro, and the electric railways, next Thursday, October 10th, from 11am to 3pm, due to a four hour work stoppage of the employees, who claim the immediate cancellation of the measure of civil enlistment

Solidarity events continue at the ERT headquarters in Agia Paraskevi. Nikos Filippidis and his clarinet will keep us company this evening with traditional music and songs. He will appear with notable musicians such as Kostas Filippidis on lute and vocals, Andreas Pappas on percussion, Nikos Karatasos on santouri, Kostas Kikilis on violin, and others.